Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO) Trading Down 2.1% - Should You Sell?

Shares of Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) were down 2.1% on Thursday . The company traded as low as $69.86 and last traded at $70.23. Approximately 2,558,450 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 53% from the average daily volume of 5,455,256 shares. The stock had previously closed at $71.73.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group upgraded Novo Nordisk A/S from a "sell" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on Novo Nordisk A/S from $156.00 to $105.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, December 23rd. StockNews.com lowered Novo Nordisk A/S from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Novo Nordisk A/S in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. They issued an "equal weight" rating for the company. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein raised shares of Novo Nordisk A/S from an "underperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.25.

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Novo Nordisk A/S Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $311.23 billion, a PE ratio of 21.08, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $82.33 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $98.89.

Novo Nordisk A/S (NYSE:NVO - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.03. Novo Nordisk A/S had a net margin of 34.81% and a return on equity of 84.68%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Novo Nordisk A/S will post 3.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Novo Nordisk A/S Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 8th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.7874 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 31st. This represents a dividend yield of 1.2%. This is an increase from Novo Nordisk A/S's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.51. Novo Nordisk A/S's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 47.72%.

Institutional Trading of Novo Nordisk A/S

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Menard Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Novo Nordisk A/S by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 12,283 shares of the company's stock worth $1,463,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 4.3% during the 3rd quarter. Optimist Retirement Group LLC now owns 2,747 shares of the company's stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 11,009 shares of the company's stock worth $1,311,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC grew its stake in Novo Nordisk A/S by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. M. Kulyk & Associates LLC now owns 3,182 shares of the company's stock worth $274,000 after buying an additional 119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Center for Financial Planning Inc. raised its stake in shares of Novo Nordisk A/S by 72.4% in the fourth quarter. Center for Financial Planning Inc. now owns 293 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 11.54% of the company's stock.

About Novo Nordisk A/S

Novo Nordisk A/S, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the research and development, manufacture, and distribution of pharmaceutical products in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, North America, and internationally. It operates in two segments, Diabetes and Obesity Care, and Rare Disease.